For marijuana industry members in Colorado, business is booming. The medical marijuana industry has been growing for years now in Colorado, and recreational marijuana sales began at the beginning of 2014. Both sectors of the industry are thriving right now in Colorado. The numbers are out for 2014, and Colorado sold almost 700 million dollars worth of marijuana and marijuana products. Per Marijuana Business Daily:
Dispensaries and retail cannabis stores in Colorado generated nearly $700 million in marijuana revenues last year, when the state became the first market in the nation to launch recreational MJ sales.
The total includes just under $386 million in MMJ sales and more than $313 million in recreational revenues, according to the latest data released by the state.
Though the final number is far short of what some had estimated early in 2014 – Gov. John Hickenlooper at one point said he expected sales to hit nearly $1 billion – the tally is impressive nonetheless, underscoring the potential of the cannabis industry.
I have to assume that 2015 will be an even bigger year for Colorado’s marijuana industry. People are scrambling to get in on Colorado’s industry, and it’s easy to see why. Marijuana is big business, and it will only get bigger. Washington will have a bigger year in 2015 than 2014, and soon Oregon and Alaska will join them by allowing legal marijuana sales as well. It’s an amazing time to be a marijuana consumer and/or entrepreneur.